Top Ten Tuesday was created by The Broke and the Bookish and is now hosted by That Artsy Reader Girl. Each week a new theme is suggested for bloggers to participate in. This week’s prompt is Love Freebie! I love to make music playlists when I read books, especially for series, so I decided to attempt a scaled down version of that and just share one song for ten of my favorite books that feature a swoon-worthy romance. (I have to give credit to Prachi @ Starry Eyed Enigma for suggesting I do a post featuring my playlists. I’m hoping this is just the first. <3)
Hello Readers! Valentine’s Day is upon us, and as a hopeless romantic who loves music, I’m ready to share my book soundtrack of love songs (in no particular order)! <3
(Link to synopsis on Goodreads through the book title.)
1
Eleanor & Park by Rainbow Rowell
I love when a book creates its own playlist. Park introduces Eleanor to a lot of great music. This song is not specifically mentioned in the book, but the band is. And the lyrics are perfect for Park.
“Boys Don’t Cry” by The Cure
I would say I’m sorry
If I thought that it would change your mind
But I know that this time
I have said too much
Been too unkind
I tried to laugh about it
Cover it all up with lies
I tried to laugh about it
Hiding the tears in my eyes
‘Cause boys don’t cry…
2
Outlander by Diana Gabaldon
Jamie and Claire’s love story deserves music with atmosphere. This song brings to mind castle towers, the misty hills of Scotland, and shifting time.
“Fuel to Fire” by Agnes Obel
…Into the town we go, into your hideaway
Where the towers grow, gone to be faraway
Sing quietly along
Pious words to cry into the under
Upon your shore as sure as I can say
Be gone be faraway
Oh what a day to choose
Torn by the hours
All that I say to you
Is like fuel to fire…
3
Cress by Marissa Meyer
Cress is my favorite book in The Lunar Chronicles. I still think of Cress and Thorne’s first meeting whenever I hear this song. Which is by one of my favorite artists, Andrew Belle. <3
“Sky’s Still Blue” by Andrew Belle
You never see clearly, till you stop crying
I never found it, until I stopped trying
I stumbled upon you, and fell through the ceiling tiles
I started a fire to smoke out my treasons
I tore down a building to pick up the pieces
And now on a clear glass wall, I can see our fate
But it’s a little too late
Oh, if you’re hearing this
I must have made it through
Oh, when the clouds above open up through my window
I’ll see the sky’s still blue…
4
The Raven Boys by Maggie Stiefvater
The Raven Cycle is one of my favorite series. Stiefvater’s poetic words deserve lyrics that match, and Feist delivers.
“The Undiscovered First” by Feist
I had what I thought were clear
Open eyes, bright blue
Vision of, of a lake
Carryin’ pictures to lay on you
Close the blinds, let ’em in
Don’t mind openin’, it’s the edge of love
You can’t un-think a thought
Either it’s there or not
Shadows of the mountain
Don’t tell them what’s under
The breadth and the height
Of an undiscovered first…
5
The Unhoneymooners by Christina Lauren
The Unhoneymooners is a fun book that demands a fun song. I can imagine John Mayer’s “New Light” playing in the background as Olive and Ethan drive around Hawaii. (If you haven’t seen Mayer’s video, what are you even doing with your life?? ;))
“New Light” by John Mayer
…Oh, you don’t think twice ’bout me
And maybe you’re right to doubt me, but
But if you give me just one night
You’re gonna see me in a new light
Yeah, if you give me just one night
To meet you underneath the moonlight
Oh, I want a take two, I want to breakthrough
I wanna know the real thing about you
So I can see you in a new light…
6
Easy by Tammara Webber
Easy is a steamy book which also covers some heavy subjects. “Incredible Love” has just the right push and pull; it’s intense, but also sweet.
“Incredible Love” by Ingrid Michaelson
…Everything says it’s time to go
But the smell of your skin makes me stay
You are not mine to ask things of
But I ask you anyway, but I ask you anyway
Incredible love, you fill me
Incredible love, you spill me
Incredible love, you kill me
Incredible love, incredible love…
7
Clockwork Prince by Cassandra Clare
Will is one of my very favorite characters. What can I say? I have a soft spot for tortured souls, okay?! This song will always make me think of Will. And how much I just want to give him a hug.
“This is the Thing” by Fink
I don’t know if you notice anything different
It’s getting dark and it’s getting cold and the nights are getting long
And I don’t know if you even notice at all
That I’m long gone babe I’m long gone
And the things that keep us apart
Keep me alive
And the things that keep me alive
Keep me alone
This is the thing
This is the thing
This is the thing…
8
Just One Day by Gayle Forman
I. LOVE. THIS. BOOK. And I loved making a playlist for it. This song–especially–always takes me back to Allyson and Willem in Paris.
“Summer is Over” by Jon McLaughlin (featuring Sara Bareilles)
…I remember June
Back when I met you
And your eyes were green
And we were, too
But summer is over
We were tangled in the morning sun
Felt you getting colder
And we knew that we would come undone
And it’s back to my town, back to your life
Gray skies are blowing a kiss goodbye to the lovers
‘Cause summer is over…
9
Lady Midnight by Cassandra Clare
Clare is superb at writing star-crossed lovers, and Lana Del Rey has the perfect haunted sound to bring Emma and Julian’s angst to life.
“13 Beaches” by Lana Del Rey
…It hurts to love you
But I still love you
It’s just the way I feel
And I’d be lying
If I kept hiding
The fact that I can’t deal
And that I’ve been dying
For something real
But I’ve been dying for something real
It took thirteen beaches to find one empty
But finally I’m fine
Past Ventura
And lenses plenty in the white sunshine
But you still can find me…
10
Twilight by Stephenie Meyer
And the book that started my obsession with playlists… Stephenie Meyer made it easy by providing her own playlists which I added to. This song will always remind me of how I felt the first time I read Twilight.
“Please Forgive Me” by David Gray
Please forgive me
If I act a little strange
For I know not what I do
Feels like lightning
Running through my veins
Every time I look at you
Every time I look at you
Help me out here
All my words are falling short
And there’s so much I want to say
Want to tell you just how good it feels
When you look at me that way, ah
When you look at me that way…
Do you make playlists for your books? Know any songs I could add to mine? Let me know in the comments!
Happy Wandering!
Fun spin! I’m terrible at pairing up songs with books, but I always enjoy reading the lists others create. 🙂
Oh I’m glad you liked it! I had so much fun doing this one. <3
Well, I will have to come back to your blog when my husband isn’t watching TV. I love the music/book pairing idea. My Love Freebie
Ha! Yes, I had to create this post with headphones because of the same thing. 😉
I love some of the ships you mentioned here. I don’t really make playlists for books I read, but sometimes I pair songs with books I write. In a way it helps me capture the mood. Interesting topic today!
Oh, I do that, too! One of the first things I do when I’m planning for Nanowrimo is make a playlist. You’re right. It helps set the mood and inspires great ideas! <3
Aren’t you the clever one? Love all of these pairings! Thank you so much.
Ha! I had so much fun on this post. 😉
I pretty much know one singer on this list and I am excited to go check out the rest of these videos! What a wonderful TTT idea this is!
Oh yay! I was hoping to introduce some new music (and books) to people, so I accomplished my goal. <3
Thanks for the shoutout Dedra!! And I absolutely loved reading this post! I have to admit I haven’t heard most of these songs, but I’m going to save these songs for when I read a few of the books you’ve mentioned which are on my TBR too?
I still have to draft my TTT for this week’s topic ?
You’re so welcome! You did inspire me to combine my two favorite pastimes. 😉 And I was hoping to introduce people to a few new songs and books, so I’m happy to hear that.
You can do it! I’m looking forward to reading it. <3
Hahaha I did finally post a really silly top ten talking about my book love!!! I’m glad I managed to inspire someone! Lol..
Oooh, I’m going to check that out now!
You did a nice job with this post. How fun. 🙂
My TTT .
Thanks Lydia! I did have a lot of fun with this one. <3
I pretty much love all these books and completely agree!! Outlander is such a good one! Great topic!
<a href="https://booksarethenewblackblog.wordpress.com/?p=1408"/My TTT
Oh yay! I had a lot of fun with this one. <3
I absolutely love the take you did for this week’s love freebie! I haven’t read all of these books but I’m gonna listen to the songs for the ones I’ve read. I can definitely see how some of them match too! Great list 😀
My TTT
Oh yay! I had so much fun with this one. <3
Super fun! And now when I read a book in the next few weeks, I’m going to be thinking of a song to go with it 🙂
Then my job is done! 😉 I love the hunt of searching for the perfect song(s) for my favorite books.
Great post. I adore music so I love it when people combine it with reading. The Cure is one of my favorite bands and hails back to my college days. In fact, my husband and I bonded over Just Like Heaven when we started dating. I really liked Eleanor & Park and you are right, that’s a great song for it.
Aww! My husband and I met in our high school band, so music has been a big part of our lives from the start, too. Working on this post has made me want to reread Eleanor & Park soon! <3
What a creative spin on this week’s topic! Here is my Top Ten Tuesday.
Thanks! <3
Wow! What a fantastic post! Really lovely!
Thank you! <3
Amazing – loved the books you listed and the songs you matched to them!
Thank you! I had fun with this one. 🙂
I love posts like this! It’s so fun to see what song people think matches with a book. You picked some great ones here.
Thank you! I had a lot of fun making this week’s post. 😉
oohh!! What an awesome idea for a list!! I’m completely terrible at matching songs and books but this was really good! When Olive wakes up, I’m going to have to give some of these a listen! 🙂
Thank you! Hopefully you both enjoy listening. 😉
Fun idea! I haven’t read most of these books and I haven’t heard a lot of the music, so thanks for the heads-up on both 🙂
Happy TTT!
Susan
http://www.blogginboutbooks.com
I did have a lot of fun with this, and I was hoping to introduce some new music and books, so I’m happy you found something. <3
Such a fun post! I love music and playlists though I’m not good at creating playlists for books myself. But I do love it when a certain song just takes you right back to a certain book 🙂
I had a lot of fun with this one. I love music and books, so it was the perfect collaboration for me. And yes, certain songs will always make me think of specific characters–and sometimes even specific scenes in books. <3
What a really creative post. I love it!
Thank you! <3
This is such a great take on this topic!
Thank you! I had a lot of fun with it. <3
I just love your spin on this one! I think it’s always special when you can find a song that fits a book really well. I’ve sadly read exactly none of these books. xD How? Where have I been? I’ve enjoyed discovering these songs, though, all of which were new to me. 😀 I love finding new music.
Yay! I was hoping to introduce readers to new books and new music, so it’s a win! 🙂
Great idea! Thanks for sharing these! ??
I had a lot of fun with it. 😉
This is such a nice idea! I could make a playlist of my own but I am not good with it! hehehe
It’s just a matter of picking songs that remind you of the books. I love a good hunt! 😉
Fantastic post concept. I’ve tried to match songs with books before but i’m terrible at it.
It’s a fun time-waster for me. 😉
Love this take on the topic because I’m discovering new music as well as new books 🙂
Yay!! I was hoping to introduce readers to both of those. 🙂
I love this post. I will be playing some of these songs today if I can find them on Youtube.
Yay! The videos I included are from Youtube. <3
Oooh love this, awesome choice for this prompt! Saving this post to listen to when I get home. 🙂
Yay!! Enjoy listening. <3
You just totally won this weeks topic choices. Not that it was a competition, it’s just that you combined my two favourite things: music and literature. I love making playlists for books, too, so I’m swooning over this. Great picks!
Oh yay!! I’m so happy you enjoyed it. I definitely had fun combining my two favorite things, too. You should make a post sometime. I love adding to my playlists. 😉
This is so cool, the best post I have visited today! Thanks . Yes you should do more of these!
Oh wow, thank you so much for the kind words! I will definitely do more. <3
This is a such a well-thought of list, combining books and songs. 🙂
Thank you. <3
this is a very cool idea! do you listen while you read or in between?
Thank you! Both, actually. I’ll usually put the playlist on shuffle and listen through my headphones while I read or clean or cook, and I’ll also listen to it in the car. Then I’m nice and fully immersed in my book’s world. 😉
That’s a really cool list. I never even thought about soundtracks for books.
It harkens back to my mixtape/cd making days. 😉
Great list! I love the book and song pairings!
Thank you! <3
I absolutely love this soundtrack idea!! So creative! Happy (early) Valentine’s Day!
Thank you! They are a lot of fun to make. Happy Valentine’s to you, too! <3
I love what you did with this post — it’s really unique and personal. I’ve read some of the books on your list, and can totally see why you paired the songs with them. 🙂
Oh, thank you! I had a lot of fun with it. 😉
I love your picks for Cress and The Raven Boys. I never thought about putting songs to books before, I tend to only put them to specific characters…
I love to do both! <3
Great post! I’ve only read Twilight, but “13 Beaches” and “Please Forgive Me” are among my favorites!!
Thank you! They are great songs! I finally get to see David Gray in concert in August, so I’ll be crossing my fingers that he performs this song. 🙂
Awww, I love indie rock. I think playlists can be whatever you like. Music is universal! 🙂
Fascinating topic! I don’t really associate songs with what I read. I do associate songs and music with my writing, but I’m still not sure I could come up with a playlist of songs for any of my books. I guess my brain isn’t wired that way.
That’s okay! I do also make playlists for my Nanowrimo projects, as well. My brain is made up of song lyrics more than anything else, so I think that’s why I’m always thinking of songs to go with books. 😉
Emma and Julian are a great choice! Love them.
<3
What a freakin’ AWESOME post! I love it! I bet I can’t read another book without thinking about what music would go along with it. I’ve never done this but apparently, my husband does occasionally. Thanks for sharing. I think you just changed my world a little. 😉
Oh my goodness! Thank you for such sweet words. ?❤️ Have fun creating your own playlists, and please share! ?
This is such a cool prompt for this week’s freebie! I’m so terrible at matching books and songs because I can never remember song titles or artists to find them later. XD But it’s a great idea. I love it! 🙂
Thank you! I do google a lot. And use iTunes playlists. 😉
Love you take on this week’s T10T! It’s very unique 🙂
Thank you! <3
Such a fun post. I love all of your pairings.
Thank you! I had a lot of fun making this week’s TTT. 🙂
I love this post! I often include playlists for my reviews and even made posts of songs that remind me of books!
Oh yay! I’ll have to check yours out. I love adding new songs to my playlists. ?
Oh I love this idea! So unique and well done (and started off perfectly with Eleanor & Park)! While I often form playlists for my own writing, it’s never been something I could do with reading. I’d love to see more of these playlist and book pairings though!
Thank you! I love to make playlists when I write, too. It helps the creative process so much. I’m looking forward to making more posts with playlists. ?
What a fun twist on (last) week’s topic! The song forOutlander is perfect!
Thank you! I thought that one was pretty perfect, too. ❤️
This is such a creative post!
Thank you! This was probably my favorite TTT so far. <3
I love this post idea too much! How fun. I love pairing songs to books, especially pairing a song to an OTP <3 Great picks!
Oh, thank you!! I had so much fun with this one. And, yes, there’s nothing like reading a favorite scene with the right song playing in the background. 😉
Ohh I love playlists, this is so fun! What a great idea!
Aww, thanks! It is one of my favorite pastimes. 😉